Show me your rack!

Hi all,
As requested, here's a picture of my rack. ;-)
ImageUploadedByAVForums1445639092.430859.jpg
 
Has anyone tried using rack fans at all? My rack is under the stairs, so I just leave the cupboard door open when we're using the AV system. If it's a film and the subs are on (I don't tend to bother with day to day TV as the sub amp isn't 12 volt triggered/controlled by ARC) then the iNuke fans really help to keep everything cool by drawing the heat forwards out into the hall.

I was thinking I might create a bit more space between the miniDSP Dirac unit and Oppo/Lumagen, so if I could find a 1U cooler then that would be good. Otherwise the option is to put a 3U panel on the back of the rack (as the depth isn't fully used by the equipment at the top), but this would be pulling the air to the back of the cupboard, so not as useful.

Anyone have any suggestions, or recommended sites to look at?

FWIW this is the picture of my rack as it is currently (with rather untidy wiring at the rear, so it isn't shown :blush:).

Dec 2015 rack.jpg
 
WOW! Thats alot of switch gear! Does it get warm?
It's not too bad, although there are 10 temperature controlled fans in the cabinet.

Has anyone tried using rack fans at all?
I tried several different dedicated rack fans and found them all way too noisy. Might not be an issue depending on your rack position.


I settled on these 12v fans. They have a built in temp sensor that increases the speed relative to heat.
ImageUploadedByAVForums1454600466.929748.jpg

I have three directly on top of each amp
ImageUploadedByAVForums1454600500.183610.jpg

and four in the top of the cabinet
ImageUploadedByAVForums1454600536.234348.jpg

Each bank of fans is also controlled by a temp sensor that switches them on at 30c and off at 28c
ImageUploadedByAVForums1454600626.356814.jpg

Never had the temp go any higher than 35c and the fans are silent. Been told they get noisy at about 38c when they reach full speed but never had that happen yet.
 
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Noise isn't such an issue as my rack is outside of the room and I can't even hear my iNuke fans from my seat (they are known as being a bit on the loud side too). Something mains powered would keep things simple too, though 12 volt is possible if I really had to. Temperature controlled would be nice though as it appeals to my Engineer side rather than just running flat out all the time.
 
Not very good photos as they are still a work in progress! Both built by myself out of mdf but I have taken a lot more care and attention to the one in the bottom of the cabinet which will house all my AV kit where and at the top of the cupboard is just for all the networking side! I will get round next week to build another unit matching the bottom one to replace the top one! Will post up more pics when complete

ImageUploadedByAVForums1454708508.141313.jpg

ImageUploadedByAVForums1454708579.551758.jpg
 
It's not too bad, although there are 10 temperature controlled fans in the cabinet.


I tried several different dedicated rack fans and found them all way too noisy. Might not be an issue depending on your rack position.


I settled on these 12v fans. They have a built in temp sensor that increases the speed relative to heat.
View attachment 676654
I have three directly on top of each amp
View attachment 676655
and four in the top of the cabinet
View attachment 676656
Each bank of fans is also controlled by a temp sensor that switches them on at 30c and off at 28c
View attachment 676657
Never had the temp go any higher than 35c and the fans are silent. Been told they get noisy at about 38c when they reach full speed but never had that happen yet.

Where are your fan/temperature controllers from?
 
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There are lots of fans and controllers on Amazon. I use three fans from one controller at present. One larger fan to pull heat away from the projector and two to dissipate heat from the TiVo box and my AVR.
ImageUploadedByAVForums1454945206.181023.jpg

ImageUploadedByAVForums1454945262.120037.jpg
 
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We're these easy to wire in? Also can't work the transformer link could you possibly post again?

Thanks
They're fairly easy to wire in if you have a basic understanding of electrical circuits and relays.
If not then maybe not so straightforward.
Didn't link to the transformers so that's why you can't get it to work. These are the ones I'm using
ImageUploadedByAVForums1455134630.129970.jpg

Think I ordered them from China through either Amazon or eBay. All I will say is be careful and research when buying transformers from China. There are some bad ones about and is why I never posted a link to any as can't remember exactly where I got mine from. Any 230vac to 12vdc transformer of the required current capacity should do.
Wiring wise. Effectively it's 230v straight to the temperature controller with the live looped into the relay side of it and back out to the transformer input side and neutral straight to transformer input also. 12v transformer output connected to the fans to be controlled. Earth to everything that has an earth terminal + cabinet housing if it's metal.
 
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They're fairly easy to wire in if you have a basic understanding of electrical circuits and relays.
If not then maybe not so straightforward.
Didn't link to the transformers so that's why you can't get it to work. These are the ones I'm using
View attachment 678959
Think I ordered them from China through either Amazon or eBay. All I will say is be careful and research when buying transformers from China. There are some bad ones about and is why I never posted a link to any as can't remember exactly where I got mine from. Any 230vac to 12vdc transformer of the required current capacity should do.
Wiring wise. Effectively it's 230v straight to the temperature controller with the live looped into the relay side of it and back out to the transformer input side and neutral straight to transformer input also. 12v transformer output connected to the fans to be controlled. Earth to everything that has an earth terminal + cabinet housing if it's metal.
My electrical mind is basic, but with your pictures and instructions I think I can get my head around it!
I've seen those transformers, also seen a few other options too, a 4 molex controller and a 3 pin to 4 molex converter
 
My electrical mind is basic, but with your pictures and instructions I think I can get my head around it!
I've seen those transformers, also seen a few other options too, a 4 molex controller and a 3 pin to 4 molex converter
The fans I've linked have three wires on a connector (possibly molex, I've no idea). Red, black and yellow I think. I just connected the red and black to + and - from the transformer and left the yellow unconnected. They work perfectly fine that way and increase speed relative to the temperature as they should, no need for any connector/converters.
 
The fans I've linked have three wires on a connector (possibly molex, I've no idea). Red, black and yellow I think. I just connected the red and black to + and - from the transformer and left the yellow unconnected. They work perfectly fine that way and increase speed relative to the temperature as they should, no need for any connector/converters.
Yeh I've seen that, I'll have to check all my options.

These were the ones I looked at you can see the molex connections in the photos. They are the same as the ones cableguy as posted previous

Programmable Fan Controller & Display:Amazon.co.uk:Computers & Accessories
 
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Has anyone managed to get a 19 inch sliding shelf for their amp?

I'm looking to put my amp on one for easier access to the rear, but from what I can find online none of the sliding shelves are wide enough for an amp - the shelves tend to have around 410mm of usable width, and a typical amp is 430mm+. Fixed shelves are fine as they don't have the sliding rails to limit the usable space.

I've found one like the below image on the left, but it means losing a 1U of space which is at a premium in my rack.

sliding-shelf-rack-mount-option.gif


Ideal welcome! Thanks. :)
 
A quick Google and managed to come across this but link to site wouldn't work.
IMG_1476132945.726658.jpg

But does show that there is rack slide out units designed for the purpose you require. Fairly similar to your upside down drawer idea but with the necessary ventilation holes.
But note it would require four anchoring points due to the weight of an amp.
 
Thanks Steroc. Looks like it would take up 1U itself though and the amp would sit on top, so would be a similar trade off to the diagram I posted?
 
I think that's the only way you'll be able to do it as standard AVR widths are a fraction smaller than the standard gap between 19" rack rails. You should have at least 1u gap if not more above and below anyway to allow convection to occur to prevent the amp from overheating.
Personally I wouldn't put an amp on a sliding drawer if it can be avoided. You would have to seriously think about cable management to avoid cables pulling out and causing possible damage if they snag when pulling the amp out and the drawer would have to pull out a good bit further than the depth of the amp which wouldn't work with your example above as the common 1u drawers don't pull out further than the drawer depth and often not even that far.
 
Yeah, I was resigning myself to the fact that I wouldn't be able to get a sliding tray with enough width, but thought I'd ask here before buying a fixed shelf - your advice makes sense.

Thanks again.
 
I used my cupboard space to hold films, good old school kit and racking :smashin:

Don't look behind the racks the black leads are black for a reason !
QCH Cinema room Feb 19 Racking 3-9512137.jpg
QCH Cinema room Feb 19 Racking 1-9512120.jpg
QCH Cinema room Feb 19 Racking 2-9512111.jpg
 

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